Tri-tri-tri!!
"Shit...", Oliver's dreams were interrupted by the shrill sound of his phone alarm.
"I shouldn't have stayed up playing RPG so late." His headache was strong and his body didn't want to move
Tri-tri-tri!!
Slipping from under the covers, he reached for his phone on the bedside table.
"Hello? Happy? I'm awake!!"
Looking around, the room was still a mess, but why clean it? It would just get messy again.
"Honestly, I don't want to get out of bed. It's so comfortable..."
Beep!
"FUCK!! WHAT NOW?"
Pulling out his phone, the screen's glow revealed messages from his mother.
[Remember today is the last day of school and you need to be there, kid.]
[I had to leave early because of work, but Mommy loves you. Kisses.]
"That's right... high school is over."
Forcing himself to leave the loving embrace of his bed, Oliver started getting ready for the last class of his life. Little did he know the disaster about to happen...
It didn't take long to finish a quick shower, but finding that ridiculous school uniform was really a problem among the piles of messy clothes.
In the end... he was late.
He had to run two blocks to catch the school bus at a different stop and his not-so-athletic body didn't help at all.
When he got on, he put on his hood and sat in the back seat. The judging looks for wearing a jacket in the infernal heat of a tropical city like his were clear, but whatever.
More than an hour later, he was already passing through the gates of the state school where he had studied his whole life.
"Oliiiiiveeerrrr!!!"
His eyes slid toward the not-so-subtle shout, where a short brunette was running toward him carrying a backpack and a folder.
"Good morning, Ana. Aren't you a bit too excited about the end of classes?" He couldn't help but ask. That crazy nerd loved studying and would be the only crazy one sad about the end of this student hell.
"Good morning, you chubby pyromaniac!" she said with pure mockery.
"Hehehehehehe"
"Maybe I shouldn't have burned the whole fort down last night, but it was for a greater cause, the princess was saved!!!" Oliver justified his war crimes in his thoughts.
"Rum! And I'm not sad at all, I just got the news that I got a spot at the federal university for mechatronics engineering." Her voice was an explosion of joy.
"Good one, shorty! Maybe you can build a robot to make up for your lack of height." He burst out laughing at the redness that rose to her face and her angry little stomp on the floor.
"You'll see, I'm still going to hit you!!"
With Ana's embarrassed little run, Oliver headed to his classroom, hoping it would be the last time he would ever step inside.
Honestly, the day was too nice and even the weather was sunny. Until he saw them in the hallway in front of the classroom door.his ex-best friend Samuel, a dark-haired young man taller than him. They used to play futsal together. Well, he still did, so his physique was in shape. Beside him was Luísa.
Luísa is beautiful, short, with short dark blonde hair, fair skin and light brown eyes. She was also Oliver's ex-girlfriend.
And they were kissing.
Ignoring it with all his might, Oliver almost ran into the classroom and threw his backpack on the chair in the back.
"Fuck it! I should have stayed in my room."
Time passed and several familiar faces arrived. Really, after what happened earlier this year, he started ignoring almost everyone and almost missed all classes.
When the cacophony of voices started to get too loud, an old bearded man in formal clothes entered the room. The students finally quieted and with a quick glance at the whole class, the old man opened his mouth.
"Today is the last day of your school life here at the state school and for some, unfortunately, it will be the last day of their whole life. I hope you had good experiences and carry what you learned within these walls for the rest of your lives. To—"
Before the old teacher could continue his speech, a bluish light bathed their bodies. Like the flashing lights of a nightclub or Christmas tree, but thousands of times more frightening.
Everyone felt a tremor beneath their feet and at that moment, hell was unleashed. Dust fell from the ceiling and screams were heard from all classrooms. His eyes instinctively went to the ceiling for an unknown reason and there was something almost indescribable.
A golden orb constantly changing shape, with a ring of purple gas around it.
"What the hell is that!!", Oliver could only point and throw himself against the wall trying to stay as far from that inhuman thing as possible, but that wasn't its goal.
A second light, now silver, bathed only some of the students. And small pieces of that orb began to detach and fly toward everyone.
At that moment, the second hell began. Oliver's skin was pierced and burned by the silver metal. From the screams of pure despair and crying coming from the whole state school, he wasn't the only one.
Many minutes of pure terror and pain continued to torture the students until a sound reached Oliver's ear.
Beep!
[Analyzing data...]
[Data successfully acquired.]
[Opening data]
[Oliver Enallume]
[Male, 18 years old]
[Realm: Mortal]
[Rank: C]
[Affinity: Nature, Fire and Wind]
A hologram appeared on his left forearm and several notifications began to form in front of him. From the lost eyes of several other students, he wasn't the only one.
Beep!
[Initialization begins in 5 minutes]
"Fuck! Why does this thing look like an apocalyptic RPG?"
Another earthquake stole the brief peace the notifications had brought and this time it was clear the classroom ceiling would not hold.
"Get the injured and leave the room!!!"
No one could imagine how an old man over 60 years old could shout so loud and, above all, keep calm, but there was Professor Antônio holding the door open for his students to pass through.
Everyone started running and some kept enough sanity to help those who had fainted get out.
"Shit, damn moment I sat in the back!!"
Probably his classroom wasn't the only one with the idea of fleeing the cramped place and last, Oliver managed to see the hall fill up as the ceiling collapsed. He had to jump hard to the side of the hallway to avoid being crushed by falling beams.
As for old Antônio, to make sure his students wouldn't be left behind, he held the door that was collapsing with the earthquake.
"Professor..." his voice escaped quietly as his vision blurred. All that was left of the old man was his bloodied arm among the debris right in front of him.
"He died to save me."